The Marauder's Way
by pyxislynx
Summary: Fred/Hermione. Hermione's had it with the present day Marauders. But what one of them did was too much. ONE-SHOT


**The Marauder's Way**

pyxislynx

Disclaimer: I don't own these Harry Potter series characters… Ask JK Rowling.

This isn't the first fanfic I made (heck I can't even remember the first one, except it being an anime fanfic… heck it's somewhere in my mind anyways), but this is the first fanfic I passed here. Please review!

Enjooooooy

**The Marauder's Way**

"How dare you!"

Hermione kicked a wall beside her. She had finished patrolling the upper and lower floors and she's now slowly making her way back to the Gryffindor Tower. It must have been near midnight; even Filch wasn't anywhere to be seen, as well as that dratted cat, Mrs. Norris. At least she was lucky with that.

But she wasn't lucky before she stormed out of the Gryffindor Common Room…

Ugh, there they go again! Honestly, they're the most difficult ones to handle in this school! Finally Harry told her and Ron how they managed to get all that gold for their funds, but really she wished he hadn't given all his Triwizard winnings to them— they were getting more and more difficult everyday! Either they paid students to test their products or they snuck them in unsuspecting people's food! When will they ever think that it's not good, that other students may get in danger!

"Come off it, Hermione, they know what they're doing." Said Ron weakly, refusing to back her up for another Weasley twins scolding. "And they haven't dared test it on you, have they?"

"Ron's right, Hermione." Harry said, looking up something in his Potions book. Even with Snape gone as Potions teacher, Slughorn gave them an almost equally hard homework. "They've used some on us, but they never surprised you with something in your food."

"But they're using innocent first years who are just starting their year here in Hogwarts!" Hermione said hotly, Ancient Runes book clamped tightly by her fists.

"What's wrong, Ron?" Harry asked, looking at Ron who seemed to be thinking hard. "Upset stomach?"

"No…" answered Ron, scratching his head. "Fred and George tried their stuff on almost everyone, especially here in Gryffindor, even to us, but they've never tried them on Hermione! How come?"

"Afraid to toe the line much further, I say." Hermione said, still looking daggers at the twins who were giving away toffee-like things to the first year testers. "Those are Ton-Tongue Toffees! I've had enough!"

Hermione marched towards where the twins and first years were congregated and took the bag of toffees from Fred. Yes, Fred. All those encounters made her easily distinguish which twin was which.

"Ah, Hermione, a pleasant evening to you, too." Fred greeted, bowing a bit with flourish. "Now may we have our bag back, please? Our testers are eager to get their candies."

"Honestly this is getting too far!" Hermione said angrily. Several people started giggling and whispering to each other. Harry just shook his head while Ron pretended to be overly busy with his homework. "These Ton-Tongue Toffee could suffocate them! Mr. Weasley had told me the effect on Dudley Dursley, and I'm very sure they'll faint— even die— from suffocation!"

"Ah, but Hermione, we've got everything under control." Said George, who was holding a clipboard of notes. "We were to give them the reversal candy when their tongues reached three feet."

"Three feet!" Hermione gasped, starting to look white. "By then their tongues' engorgement would've suffocated them!"

"Please, Hermione, let's stop this." Fred said trying to get back the bag of toffees.

"Yes I am certainly going to make you stop this!" Hermione retorted, moving the bag to her back, away from Fred's hands. "If you don't stop this I'll tell you to Professor McGonagall! Worse, to Professor Dumbledore!"

"Er, Fred, I think she's serious." George muttered to Fred.

"I most certainly am!" Hermione said irritably.

"Please, Hermione, don't force me to do something I've been meaning to do for a long time." Fred said, advancing slowly and looking at her seriously.

"Don't you dare do something funny to me, I'm a prefect, Fred!"

"Something funny?" Fred said, still advancing on a backing Hermione. "No, no. I just want to change something in you."

"Change?" Hermione said, looking confused. "It's you two who need change, you never grow up!"

"Hermione," Fred whispered dangerously, having trapped Hermione to a wall. Harry and Ron had abandoned their homework and watched them apprehensively. "Do you know how rarely you smiled at me?"

"I— w-what?" Hermione stammered, panicking inside her head. "F-Fred what are you planning— I swear I'll tell Prof—"

Whatever Hermione was planning to threat was forgotten as her mind went blank with shock— Fred had suddenly taken her in his arms and brought her lips to his, completely paralyzing her from head to feet. Hermione didn't hear Harry and Ron's exclamation of "What!", nor George's "Wicked!" nor the rest of Gryffindor House cheering and hooting with delight. She didn't realize that her hand had gotten limp, nor had she realized that she dropped the bag of toffees to the ground. She didn't realize, too, how red her cheeks had become, nor how fast her heartbeat had come. She did realize, though, when Fred finally parted with her lips and whispered to her ear.

"Love," he whispered, stroking Hermione's hair and cheek. "Ask me nicely and we'll test only from fourth years up. Surely that would be alright?"

"How dare you!" Hermione shouted, kicking the wall again before sliding down to the floor. "How dare you how dare you how dare you…"

It wasn't just about the action— it was more about her _reaction. _Why didn't she resist him? Why didn't she put a much larger gap between them? Why did she allow herself to be stunned by a— a— a _kiss_! A kiss from Fred Weasley, a successor of the Marauders, a wily inventor, a joke shop perpetrator! And worse, why's there a voice in her head saying that was one of the best things that happened to her in all her life!

"How-dare-you-how-dare-you-how-dare-you—"

"You shouldn't strain yourself with prefect duties, love, it'll not do well with your health."

"You!"

Hermione quickly stood up and backed a couple of feet away from Fred.

"We've stopped testing on the first years, just so you know." Fred said, taking off his jacket.

"W-what are you planning!" Hermione said, starting to panic. "Don't try and do something funny again— I can scream real loud—"

"It's quite chilly; you might catch cold— and colds are a no-no, if you want to have fun during winter holidays."

"D-D-Don't come near me! I'll scream—"

"Please don't," Fred said, putting his jacket on Hermione. It felt very warm. "Filch's unbelievably cranky nowadays. Don't know what the bloody hell's wrong with him."

"I-I-I—"

"Sorry for the surprise at the Common Room."

Hermione stared at Fred. _What?_

"Mind you, that wasn't funny." Fred continued, still looking serious. "I really meant what I did. Well, I dunno… Actually I was planning to surprise you with something, like giant flowers or any of our products but then… There you were… looking lovely as ever, though still not smiling…"

"I-I-I don't understand—"

Was he serious! Did he really mean what she thought he meant!

"Really, for someone as smart as you I thought you would get it right then and there."

"W-What—?"

Fred clapped his hands before Hermione's face and bright white, pink and red roses popped out from them, bundled with a red ribbon.

"Would you want chocolates and a great big teddy bear with that?" Fred smiled at her. "Though I do admit, you'll have to wait for tomorrow, there's not one store open at Hogsmeade now, is there?"

Before she could even control herself, Hermione had taken the flowers with a warm smile and leaned over to Fred.


End file.
